Chicago Cubs fans eager to beat the Curse of the Billy Goat also want to feast on the billy goat.

"It always happens, but this year is crazy," said Cookie Davos, co-owner of Halsted Packing House in the Fulton River District.

Davos estimates goat sales at the butcher shop and slaughterhouse have been up about 25 percent this fall, including orders from restaurants that typically stick to more mainstream American fare.

"They're coming up with goat sausage and goat burgers — I even have a taco joint that's doing goat tacos," she said.

Q-BBQ will be selling smoked goat sandwiches at a lunchtime pop-up restaurant in Willis Tower this week. The goat sandwiches, which go on sale Tuesday, will cost $10.08 — a nod to the 108 years since the Cubs' last World Series victory.

In the Lakeview neighborhood, Dark Horse Tap & Grille's "Eat the Curse" special — a goat and pork bratwurst with gyro-style seasonings and caramelized onions — has been on the menu opening week and at all playoff games. Dark Horse has sold out of about 50 goat brats each week, said Director of Operations Ryan Yates.

On Saturday, Lakeview's Paulina Market roasted a goat on a spit outside its store. "We wanted to make sure we really killed the curse," said chef Andy Winkle.

The butcher shop carries goat bratwurst year-round, but sales have nearly tripled during the playoffs, he said.

"A lot of people trying (goat) for the first time expect it to be gamey, but it's not," said Winkle, who likened it to lamb.

Davos gets the same reaction from individuals buying a goat to roast on a spit at playoff watching parties.

"It gives Americans a chance to try something different. It's very good meat and very tasty, and it's great for people to start broadening their palates," she said.

Less clear is whether it helps the team's chances. Last year, five competitive eaters devoured a 40-pound goat in an unsuccessful bid to reverse the curse — cast, legend has it, after the Cubs barred Billy Goat Tavern owner William Sianis' pet goat from a 1945 game. Earlier attempts to defeat the curse have sought to appease, with current owner Sam Sianis invited to return with a goat treated as a welcome guest, not dinner.

The proliferation of goat dishes isn't the only way Cubs fans are demonstrating their allegiance. From soaring Airbnb rates to relaxed dress codes and wagers between regional offices, Cubs fever has taken hold.

$1,000 a night?

Sean Ables and his roommate joked about renting their Wrigleyville apartment on Airbnb during the Cubs' postseason run, hoping to make some money off traveling fans.

Then the Cubs kept winning, and it wasn't a joke anymore.

They listed their two-bedroom apartment for $1,000 a night on the room-renting platform Sunday night, Ables said. So far, they haven't gotten any bites, but they're not giving up.

"We'll give it two days of the super high inflation rates (then) lower it down to more reasonable prices," Ables said. "We initially expected to get around $350 a night."

Ables had never listed his apartment on Airbnb before, but with the Cubs playing a series of historic games a block away this weekend, he knew the opportunity was too good to miss. And he's not alone.

As the Cubs head to the World Series for the first time since 1945, Cubbie fever continues to take over the city — and its food.

Plenty of restaurants are offering specials during the games, but here's a fun one you can grab during the workday: In hopes of banishing the bad juju of the Curse of...

There's a two-bedroom condo five blocks from Wrigley Field listed for $800 a night, and another on Addison Street for $500 per night. Some prices are high farther from Wrigley too: A one-bedroom apartment in Uptown is listed for $780 per night.

Before your vision is clouded by dollar signs, remember that much of what has been booked have been reasonably priced rentals, said Ben Breit, Chicago-based press secretary for Airbnb.

"It's easy to look at the platform right now and be like, 'Oh my God,'" he said. "I would take a look Thursday and I bet a lot of those outrageously priced listings are still going to be there."

Breit couldn't yet provide comprehensive numbers for listings for this weekend, but he said Airbnb did see an increase in people listing on and booking through its platform during the postseason.

Neighborhoods around the ballpark — Uptown, Roscoe Village, Lakeview, Wrigleyville, Boystown, North Center and Buena Park — saw a 6.6 percent growth in the number of listings from Sept. 1 to Oct. 1.

Then on Oct. 14-16, when the Cubs played the first few games of the National League Championship Series, the number of those staying with Airbnb in Chicago increased 25 percent to 10,000 travelers, Breit said.

Jeanenne Tornatore, senior editor for Orbitz.com, is able to look ahead a little more, and she said it looks like Cubs fans may be more willing to travel than Indians fans.

According to Orbitz's airfare bookings, 50 percent more people are traveling from Chicago to Cleveland for games 1 and 2 of the series than people traveling from Cleveland to Chicago for games 3, 4 and 5. Tornatore couldn't give exact numbers.

Something blue

Chicago wedding planner Reva Nathan said she has a wedding this Saturday at a luxury hotel in downtown Chicago. Both the bride and groom are from New York, and most of the guests are coming from New York, though some relatives in Chicago will be attending.

As of Monday morning, the Cubs' appearance in the World Series hasn't come up, and "this bride is very detail-oriented," Nathan said. Nathan was wrestling with whether to raise the issue herself. "I've been playing it over in my mind," she said.

If it were a Chicago couple, it would be a no-brainer.

"I'd be aggressive about having the conversation," Nathan said.

Banking on a win

Regional bank presidents for PNC and Fifth Third already have wagers riding on the outcome of the World Series.

Paul Clark, PNC's regional president in Cleveland, and Scott Swanson, the bank's regional president in Chicago, have a bet going that involves jerseys.

The president whose team loses must wear the winning team's jersey for an entire day, even at community events.

Also, if Cleveland loses, Clark will send Slyman's corned beef and Great Lakes Brewing Co. Christmas ale, among other things, to Swanson.

If the Cubs lose, Swanson will send Lou Malnati's pizza, Vienna Beef, Garrett's popcorn and Old Style beer to Clark.

Over at Fifth Third, Chicago Regional President Bob Sullivan has agreed to send a Chicago-style pizza to Cleveland if the Cubs lose. If Cleveland loses, Cleveland Regional President Jerry Kelsheimer will send pierogies and cassata cake.

Dress codes

Not that state workers' jobs or potential upward mobility depend on it, but Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner on Sunday told directors of state agencies that they have the "discretion" to allow employees to wear Cubs garb at work through the end of the World Series.

"It is not a mandate nor is it a condition of employment or advancement," said the memo from Rauner chief of staff Richard Goldberg.